Book rack



y 11, 1965 R. B. LAMBERT 3,182,806

' BOOK RACK Filed Aug. 3, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR FITToR/vEY REUBEN B. LHMBERT y 1965 R. B. LAMBERT BOOK RACK 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 3, 1962 OPNEY HTT United States Patent Olfice 3,182,806 Patented May 11, 1965 3,182,806 BOOK RACK Reuben B. Lambert, Bristol, Conn., assignor to Larnpel, Incorporated, New Hartford, Conn., a corporation of Connecticut Filed Aug. 3, 1962, Ser. No. 214,574 3 Claims. (Cl. 211-43) This invention relates to furniture, and more particularly to a double ended expandable book rack for adjustably receiving a plurality of books on both sides of a central vertical block mounted on a flat base plate.

One object of the present invention is to provide a book rack of the above nature which will be simple in construction, inexpensive to manufacture, easy to assemble and manipulate, compact, ornamental in appearance, and very eflicient and durable in use.

With these and other objects in view, there has been illustrated on the accompanying drawings, one form in which the invention may conveniently be embodied in practice.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 represents a side view of the improved double ended book rack.

FIG. -2 is a top plan view of the same.

FIG. 3 is an end view of the same.

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the same.

FIG. 5 is a vertical sectional View of the same, taken along the line 5-5 of 1 16.4.

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view on a larger scale, taken along the line 65 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 7 is a side view of the book rack, as it appears with a plurality of books held in both ends thereof and with the resilient metallic spiral coiled members in expanded position.

Referring now to the drawings, in which like reference numerals denote corresponding parts throughout the several views, the numeral 10 indicates a central vertical block of rectangular construction, preferably constructed of wood, and having parallel top and bottom surfaces 11, 12, parallel side surfaces 13, 14 and parallel end surfaces 15, 1 6. Provision is also made in the end surface 15 of a pair of vertically spaced parallel inclined pen and pencil metallic sockets 17, 18.

In order to resiliently hold a plurality of books B and B in the ends of the book rack, provision is made of a pair of elongated resilient hard tempered thin metal spirally coiled strips 19, having flat central bases 20a, 21a. The widths of the strips 19, 20 diverge outwardly from the bases 20a, 21a and terminate in a pair of short radial ends 22, 23, inside said coiled strips 19, 20. The inner ends of the bases 20a, 21a, are provided with upstanding vertical sections 24, '25 which are adapted to be detachably received in abutted relation within a vertical slot 26 (FIG. 6) located in the base 12 of the block, said slot being of sufficient width to tightly receive both of the upstanding sections 24, .25.

The top of the slot 26 is made arcuate in shape as indicated by the numeral 27 (FIG. 5), and the ends of the upstanding sections 24, are beveled at 24a, 25a in order to permit said sections 24, 2 5 to fit within the arcuate recess 27 of the slot 26.

Provision is also made of a longitudinal oval base plate 28 of stiff tempered metal located in horizontal position underneath the bases 20a, 21a of the metallic coiled strips 19, 20, said base plate '28 having parallel sides 29, 30 and semicircular end sections 31, 3 2. The base plate 28 is secured to the block 10 by means of a plurality of wood screws 33, 34, 3'5, 36 passing through the bases 20a, 21a of the resilient coil strips 19, 20.

The curved upper widest central portions of the coiled strips 19, 20 are adapted to engage the outer surfaces of the books B and :B, located within the rack, as clearly shown in FIG. 7 of the drawing. The inner ends 22, 23 of the coiled strip holders 1-9, '20 have curved beveled tips 37, 38 to avoid catching on exterior objects and to enhance the ornamental appearance of the book rack.

In order to prevent injury to the furniture upon which the book rack is placed, provision is made underneath the oval base plate 28 of an oval felt strip 39 secured to said metal base plate, as by an adhesive.

Operation In the operation of this invention, the books B, :B can be easily inserted vertically or horizontally into either or both sides of the book rack, after which said coiled strips 19, 20 will exert resilient pressure inwardly upon said books for holding them securely in position.

One advantage of the present invention is that the two book holding coiled strips 19, 20 will be securely attached to the central block 10 and oval base plate 28, and cannot slip out of position, as was the case with previous book ends which were not attached together.

While the present invention is herein illustrated for holding books, it will be understoodthat it may also be employed for holding paper napkins, mail, pads, drawings, folders or other flat articles, within its general spirit and scope.

While there has been disclosed in this specification one form in which the invention may be embodied, it is to be understood that this form is shown for the purpose of illustration only, and that the invention is not limited to the specific disclosure, but may be modified and embodied in various other equivalent forms without departing from its spirit. In short, the invention includes all the modifications and embodiments coming within the scope of the following claims.

Having thus fully described the invention, what is claimed as new, and for which it is desired to secure Letters Patent is:

1. In a book rack, a central vertical block having an upstanding slot in its base, a pair of tempered metal resilient coiled spiral strips located on the sides of said block, and having upturned inner extremities located in abutment with each other and fitted into said slot, a horizontal base plate located under said block and said coiled strips, and screw means passing through said plate and said strips to secure said coiled strips to said block.

2. The invention as defined in claim 1, in which the edges of said strips diverge outwardly from said block, and have inwardly extending radial tips located inside the extremities of said coiled strips.

3. The invention as defined in claim 1, in which said slot has an arcuate top, and the upturned inner extremities of said strips have beveled edges to fit within said arcuate slot.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,557,419 10/25 Clarke 2ll43 2,323, 892 7/43 Bricker 21 l-42 FOREIGN PATENTS 457,202 1 1/ 36 Great Britain.

FRANK L. ABBOTT, Primary Examiner. 

1. IN A BOOK RACK, A CENTRAL VERTICAL BLOCK HAVING AN UPSTANDING SLOT IN ITS BASE, A PAIR OF TEMPERED METAL RESILIENT COILED SPIRAL STRIPS LOCATED ON THE SIDE OF SAID BLOCK, AND HAVING UPTURNED INNER EXTREMITIES LOCATED IN ABUTMENT WITH EACH OTHER AND FITTED INTO SAID SLOT, A HORIZONTAL BASE 